# "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster: font?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [August 28, 2010, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769 "2010-08-28T05:24:17Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)
#### Post date: [August 28, 2010, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/1 "2010-08-28T05:24:17Z")
What is the font used on the now famous “Keep Calm and Carry On” posters issued by HMG in WW2?
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### Author:  [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)
#### Post date: [August 28, 2010, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/2 "2010-08-28T05:53:42Z")
The [=C&ch[1]=C&ch[2]=K&ch[3]=A&ch[4]=O&ch[5]=A&ch[6]=&ch[7]=E&ch[8]=&ch[9]=R&ch[10]=&ch[11]=&ch[12]=E&ch[13]=L&ch[14]=N&ch[15]=&ch[16]=R&ch[17]=M&ch[18]=P&ch[19]=Y&wtfserver=node5.ric.mf&id=000099e84c754eb50008cae700000b9a&glyphcount=20&imageid=0"]“What The Font” identifier site produced no good results]([WhatTheFont | MyFonts’ AI-Powered Font Finder](http://new.myfonts.com/WhatTheFont/results?ch)[0), but another thread on a typography site I checked said that one discussion thought it was originally hand-lettered, back in the day. Though the modern font [P22 Underground](http://www.fontshop.com/fonts/singles/p22/p22_underground_heavy/) comes close.
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### Author:  [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)
#### Post date: [August 28, 2010, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/3 "2010-08-28T13:45:35Z")
And to most laymen, Gill Sans will be close enough.
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### Author:  [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)
#### Post date: [August 30, 2010, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/4 "2010-08-30T05:44:01Z")
For those wondering what this ‘famous’ poster is, [here](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Keep_Calm_and_Carry_On_Poster.svg/220px-Keep_Calm_and_Carry_On_Poster.svg.png) is a link to it. (Red version; it came in several colors.)
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### Author:  [@mickeys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mickeys)
#### Post date: [October 28, 2011, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/5 "2011-10-28T03:27:39Z")
A better choice might be the **FREE** K-Type “Keep Calm and Carry On” typeface, available at [http://www.k-type.com/?p=2156](http://www.k-type.com/?p=2156)
The original was hand-drawn.
P22 Underground has a similar look, but is used on London Underground signage.
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### Author:  [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)
#### Post date: [October 28, 2011, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/6 "2011-10-28T10:12:02Z")
> [@mickeys](#):
>
> A better choice might be the **FREE** K-Type “Keep Calm and Carry On” typeface, available at [http://www.k-type.com/?p=2156](http://www.k-type.com/?p=2156)
>
> The original was hand-drawn.
>
> P22 Underground has a similar look, but is used on London Underground signage.
And Gill Sans is a kinda rip-off of Johnson’s Underground font (something Eric Gill admitted) It was designed because London Underground held the licence for Johnson Underground and wouldn’t allow others to use it. The poster, although probably hand-drawn, has very similar characteristics to Gill and Johnson Underground and one of them was probably a reference point for the designer of the poster.
Good link **Mickeys** , I should’ve known some canny designer would design a font of the poster.
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### Author:  [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)
#### Post date: [October 28, 2011, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/7 "2011-10-28T10:18:59Z")
Actually, looking more closely at the letter ‘R’, Gill Sans is more likely to be the designer’s influence than the Underground font. Gill Sans was a hugely popular font at the time and has become part of British design culture as representative of the graphic style of the 30s/40s. It is used frequently by designers who want to evoke a nostalgic Britishness, see for example Terence Conran’s [Albion Cafe](http://www.albioncaff.co.uk/shop/), and the [Peyton and Burne](http://shop.peytonandbyrne.net/Category/55-coffee.aspx) brand of teas/coffee/cakes.
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### Author:  [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)
#### Post date: [October 29, 2011, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-calm-and-carry-on-poster-font/551769/8 "2011-10-29T01:27:14Z")
I seem to remember the book _Just My Type_ discussing this poster, but I can’t find my copy right now.